Yes — Google Sheets can send automatic email reminders using Apps Script, Google's built-in scripting tool. It doesn't require add-ons, third-party software, or a paid subscription.
The reminders can be triggered by:
- A date in the sheet — send an email the day before a deadline, on a specific date, or a set number of days in advance
- A value change — send an email when a cell changes to "Overdue," "Due Soon," or any other value you define
- A schedule — check the sheet every morning and send alerts for anything that meets your criteria that day
Google Sheets doesn't have a built-in "send reminder" button. All of this requires a short script — but the scripts are copy-paste ready and most people have theirs running in under 15 minutes.
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The Most Common Use Cases
Due date reminders for tasks or projects
A task tracker with a Due Date column and an Owner Email column. A script runs every morning, finds tasks due tomorrow, and emails each owner a list of what's coming up. Completed tasks are skipped.
This is one of the most-built automations in Google Sheets — full step-by-step tutorial here.
Invoice payment reminders
An invoice tracker with issue dates, due dates, and payment status. A script checks daily for invoices that are overdue or approaching their due date, and emails the client (or you, to follow up manually).
This pairs directly with the Automatic Invoice Tracker.
Stock or inventory alerts
A quantity tracker where items have reorder thresholds. A script runs every morning and emails you a list of anything at or below threshold.
Full setup: How to Build an Inventory Tracker With Low-Stock Alerts.
Overdue row alerts
A shared Google Sheet where rows have a status column. When a row hasn't been updated in N days, or when a date in the row has passed and the status isn't "Done," someone gets an email.
How to Get Notified When Someone Edits Your Google Sheet covers the edit-based version.
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What This Requires
Every reminder setup needs two things:
- A script that reads the sheet, checks conditions, and calls
MailApp.sendEmail()orGmailApp.sendEmail() - A time-driven trigger that runs the script on a schedule — daily, weekly, or hourly
Setting up the trigger takes about 2 minutes. The script itself is provided in every tutorial linked above.
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Where to Start
If you want reminders tied to due dates in a task or project sheet, start with How to Create a Task Tracker That Sends Due Date Reminders. It covers the full setup from sheet structure to scheduled trigger.
If you've never used Apps Script before, Apps Script for Beginners explains how the editor works and walks through your first script before you add any automation logic.
Don't want to write the script yourself? Describe your sheet and what should trigger the reminder, and it'll be configured for you. Get it installed